Packer for silos.



J. A. WESTBROOK. BACKER FOB. SILOS. APPLICATION FILED 001". 1, 1913.

1,104,333, I Patented July 21, 191$ Z7 jg; Z 3 & A l J; J 3

Attorneys JOHN ALBERT 'WESTBROOK,

. D, STATES. PATENT orrio.

or BRADY, TEXAS, AssIenon or ONE-HALF T0 Jon .A. ADKINS, or BRADY, TEXAS.

PACKE'R FOR sILos.

To all whom it may concern: 7 7 Be it known that I, JOH A. WESTBROOK, a citizen of the United States, residing at Brady, in the county of McGulloch and State of Texas, have invented a new and useful Packer for'Silos, of which the following is a specification.

The device forming the subject matter of this application is adapted to be employed upon silos for packing the ensilage therein. One object of the present invention is to provide a device of the type above indicated which may be readily assembled with any silo of standard construction, to carry out the packing operation.

Another object of the invention is to pro vide novel means for maintaining in proper relation with respect to each other, the several elements in which the packer shaft is received.

Another object of the invention is to provide novel means whereby the packer shaft may be lengthened or shortened at will.

It is within the scope of the invention to improve generally and to enhance the utility of, devices of that type to which the present invention appertains.

With the above and other objects in view which willappear as the description proceeds, the invention resides in the combination and arrangement of parts and in the details of construction hereinafter described and claimed, it being understood that changes in the precise embodiment of the invention herein disclosed can be made with in the scope of what is claimed without departing from the spirit of the invention.

In the accompanying drawing :Figure 1 shows the invention in'eleva-tion, mounted upon a silo, the silo being partly broken away; Fig, 2 is a fragmental top plan of the frame in which the rotatable and slidable elements of the structure are mounted; Fig. 3 is a perspective showing the packing element; Fig. 4 is a fraginental elevation showing the means whereby the adjacent ends of the shafts are connected, parts being broken away; Fig. 5 is a perspective showing one blade of the packing element together with the head whereby the said blade is carried; Fig. 6 is a perspective showing a slight modification in the invention.

In the accompanying drawings there is shown a silo 1 which may be of desired form. Mounted upon the upper end of the Specification of Letters Patent. v .Pa tented J 1y 21, 1914, Application filed October 7, 1913. Serial No. 793,974.

silo 1 is aframe2, the same being shown as comprising a base 3 and a cap 4, there being spacers 5, 6 and 7 interposedbetween the base and the cap. Strap bolts 8 extend upwardly through the base 3 and carry washers 9 engagedby nuts 10 which cooperate with the upper face of the base 3. The lower ends ofthe strap bolts 8 are connected with the side-wall of the silo 1 by means of attachingelements 11 of any desired sort. Obviously, any suitable means may be provided for connecting the frame 2 with r the silo 1.

A horizontally disposed shaft 12 is journaled for rotation in the spacers 7 and 6 and is provided at its outer end with a pulley 14 or any other suitable means whereby rotary movement may be imparted to the shaft 12 from a prime mover. Secured to the inner end of the shaft 12 is a pinion 15, meshing into ahorizontally disposed gear wheel 16, positioned between the base 3 and the Cap 4. Balls or other antifrictional elements indicated at 17 are intel-posed between thelower face of the'gear' wheel 16 and the base portion 3 of the frame 2. An annular spacer 18 is mounted between the whe-el l6 and the cap 4.

Extended through the base 3, the cap 4,

the wheel 16 and the spacer 18 is a shaft 19 provided with a longitudinally extended keyWay-QO adapted to be engaged by a key 21 carried'by the gear wheel 16. From the foregoing itv will be seen that when the wheel 16 is rotated, the shaft 19 will be rotated also, the shaft, however, being permitted to slide longitudinally, owing to the key and keyway construction 2120. 7

At this point it maybe noted that the removable spacer exerclses two functions. First, it permits the anti-friction elements 17 to be interposed between the gear wheel 16 and the base 3 and to hold the gear wheel 16 in place; and secondly, the spacer 18, being engaged with the upper end of the key 21 serves to prevent an accidental displacement of the key.

The shaft 19 preferably comp-rises a plurality of sections 22 each section being equipped at one end with a reduced, threaded tip 24 and being provided at its opposite end with aninternally threaded socket 25, the construction being such that one section of the shaft may be threaded readily into another section thereofto perl j e 1 mit an elongation or a shortening of the shaft. Surroumling the shaft 19 is a collar 26, held in place by a set screw 27. This collar 26 is adapted to engage the cap 4: and serves to uphold any one section of the shaft while another section of the shaft is being threaded thereinto. This feature is of great. importance when the structure is being set up for use. Further, referring to Fig. 1,

it will be observed that the collar 26 may he slid upwardly toward the extremity of any section of the shaft which is about to be removed, and when the set screw 27 is engaged in the keyway 20, the collar constitutes a means whereby the section which is about to be removed may be rotated to disengage the tip 524 from the socket 25.

Secured to the lower end of the shaft 19 is a head 28, in the present instance shown as of rectangular form. In the side faces of the head 28 are formed diagonally dis posed openings 29, adapted to receive the reduced tongues 30 formed at the inner ends of blades 31, the blades 31 and the head 28 constituting a packing element. The blades 31 are disposed at an angle to the axis of the shaft 19, as will be understood from Fig. 3. The construction is such that when the shaft 19 is rotated in one direction, the blades will serve to compact the ensilage into the silo. When, however, the shaft 19 is rotated in an opposite direction, the blades may be employed for loosening up the ensilage.

The practical operation of the structure hereinbefore described is as follows: Rotary movement is imparted to the shaft 12 by means of the pulley 14, the pinion 15 meshing into the gear wheel 16 and imparting a rotary movement to the shaft 19 and the blades 31, through the medium of the key 21 and the keyway 20. As the ensilage accumulates in the silo, the shaft 19 and the parts carried thereby will move upwardly and as an increment of material is deposited in the silo 1, the mate-rial will be packed down firmly, by the rotating blades 31.

It is of course to be understood that the packer may be so constructed as to fit silos of any size. Further, if desired, the blades 31 may be replaced by rollers 31 as shown in Fig. 6.

Having thus described the invention, "What is claimed is 1. In a silo packer, a frame comprising a base anda cap; a wheel disposed between the base and the cap; anti-friction elements located between the wheel and the base; a spacer interposed between the wheel and the cap and removable to permit the wheel and the anti-friction elements to be placed be tween the base and cap; a shaft mounted to slide in the wheel; a packing element carried by the shaft;.and means for connecting the wheel and the shaft for simultaneous rotation.

2. In a silo packer, a frame comprising a base and a cap; a wheel located between the base and the cap; a shaft mounted to slide in the wheel and provided with a key way; a key in the wheel and engaged in the keyway; a spacer surrounding the shaft and interposed between the wheel and the cap, the spacer constituting means for retaining the key in place and constituting also a slide-bearing for the shaft; and a packing element carried by the shaft.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own, I have hereto affixed my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

JOHN ALBERT lVESTBROOK.

Witnesses:

J NO. Gr. Hamns, A. B. CARRUHAS.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. 0. 

